Holocaust- Bomb The Tracks?

[*bengalfan74*]

(11-01-2019, 10:39 AM)grampahol Wrote: There seems to be an overall lack of understanding the contempt for Jews globally at the time and not just in Germany. Anti Semitism wasn't just isolated to Germany or the Nazi regime. There was very little sympathy at the time for Jews most everywhere. It wasn't until after the war was over that anti semitism was frowned upon like it is today and even today Jews are hated by many especially in the middle east. Once again here we are applying the standards of today with the standards of years past. 
We could apply the same thing today to homesexual behavior then? How about racial discrimination? When the US inturned Japanese citizens few people actively objected and yet today most people see it as an outrage.
Are we to expect that in the 1940s the world would have foreseen the changes in how people view things today? Hardly. 
The simple fact of the matter is that the Nazi regime wasn't really even frowned upon by most people at the time. It took massive propaganda efforts to demonize Nazi's which thankfully finally prevailed, but in the 1920s, 30's and even into the 40's the Nazi regime wasn't viewed at the brutal system it became. Most people at the time really didn't care what was happening to Jews and without the massive propaganda efforts they probably still wouldn't today. Being a genius at hindsight is a great job...if you can get it.

Very true

I remember watching a show probably 10 years ago about the plight of a ship loaded with Jews that sailed from Belgium perhaps ? I think it was just days before WW2 broke out. Hundreds of Jews fleeing the Nazi's. And during the course of the show they mentioned other ships and examples of Jews fleeing overland that got denied entry into whatever country, anyways.

They were turned away time and again at every port of call they landed at. There were several countries, not just the U.S. They were at sea for some time before they were finally given asylum in South America somewhere IIRC.

Point is, it wasn't just a German thing. Now that doesn't mean every country was about to kick off their own holocaust. But basically worldwide there was a bias towards Jews for whatever reasons. Even hatred ! It goes way back through history many times in many places.

Does any of this make it right ? NO

But anytime you're studying history you have to take into account the times, it's often hard to do. 

I've been studying the American Civil War a lot lately. It's hard for us today to understand the mindset of the people of that era. In those days your state, your hometown, was your country. The bulk of the population of both the North and South were hardly ever more than a few miles from home. Alabama was your "country" Ohio was your "country". And no I'm not arguing states rights was the reason for the civil war it was about slavery.

Just trying to point out how public opinion, mindset, beliefs, are very different at different times in history.